This new Online Backup/Restore utility in MySQL 6.0 server is easy to use and unlike mysqldump, it is used to issue backup and restore commands right from the mysql client command prompt window. The syntax of the command for performing the backup is as follows:

The BACKUP DATABASE copies all data and metadata from one or more MySQL databases, into an image file from where it can be restored later. It is also possible to use SCHEMA as a synonym for DATABASE in the syntax, i.e. "BACKUP SCHEMA as a command instead of "BACKUP DATABASE The database_name_list can be the name of a database or a)it of .multiple databases separated by commas. And the image_file_name is the name of the backup file along with the absolute path where f the file will be saved.



The syntax for online backup is easy to remember and can be used to perform backup of databases on MyISAM storage engines. Earlier the backup had to be per¬formed in an offline state for MyISAM type of database, now with this new ability of MySQL 6_0, online backup is possible, which means DML statements like INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE can run concurrently while the backup is in progress. Also note that the backup of the MyISAM type database in MySQL 6.0 is also a native backup unlike the backup files produced by mysqldump utility which are logical backups. The difference between native and logical backup is that in a native backup the backup file is taken from the underlying OS and is not areadable SQL-based file which is generated in case oflogical backup. The bene¬fit of a native database is that its executes faster and requires less storage space as compared to logical backup files.

To check this utility we used a test database named "world", which is avail¬able for download from the MySQL website. From the MySQL client command prompt, we issued the following com¬mand for backup.